Policy Dialogue
Subnational Climate Action and Monitoring
Special address by Shri Eshwar Khandre, Hon'ble Environment Minister, Government of Karnataka at the launch of the KSAPCC Monitoring dashboard.
On 21-22 November 2024, Hanns Seidel Foundation (HSF) India, Environmental Management & Policy Research Institute (EMPRI), Centre for Environment Education (CEE) South came together to organise a policy dialogue for policymakers, decision-makers, domain experts, policy leaders, researchers and NGOs to discuss the existing monitoring strategies for subnational climate action. The exercise was aimed at evolving a comprehensive strategy to monitor the Karnataka State Action Plan on Climate Change (KSAPCC).
This year, HSF India, CEE and EMPRI with the support of the domain experts developed a training module on KSAPCC monitoring and subsequently a training workshop was conducted to provide training to the government officials of Karnataka in monitoring, key performance indicators (KPIs), data collection and reporting. The policy dialogue helped build on our previous efforts of institutionalising monitoring practices as per the departmental KPIs and requirement of the KSAPCC, national policies and global frameworks.
Shri Eshwar Khandre, Hon’ble Minister, Department of Forest, Ecology and Environment, Government of Karnataka, inaugurated the two-day Policy Dialogue on 21 November 2024. In his special address, talking about the challenges posed by climate change, Hon’ble Minister said, “Its vagaries, which are slowly but surely being felt by us in the form of globally disruptive climatological events, are no coincidence and neither is the increase in the frequency of their occurrences or the increase in the magnitude of their disruptive and destructive potential.” Shri Khandre put stress on the need for the government departments to coordinate to tackle climate change. He also launched the concept of KSAPCC Monitoring Dashboard jointly developed by CEE, EMPRI and HSS. Underling the importance of this unique dashboard, Shri Khandre stated, “The KSAPCC Monitoring Dashboard is a critical step toward evidence-based policy implementation, enabling informed decision-making for a sustainable future”. Shri B P Ravi, IFS, Director General, EMPRI, added, “The data will help in course correction. For instance, in the development of a lake, if a huge part of the funds has been spent on concrete structure instead of the core area of ecological restoration. This involves creating awareness among officials as well as the public.”
Following were the key takeaways of the policy dialogue:
The KSAPCC presents a model that includes a combination of state government funding, central government support, and private sector investments, each playing a vital role in addressing climate change at the subnational level.
A whole-of-society approach holds key to win the battle against climate change. Therefore, engaging NGOs, academia and civil society at large in the KSAPCC localisation is the need of the hour.
Integration of local community and field level observation data are key to effective monitoring.
Technology including space technology can play crucial role in enhancing monitoring coverage and providing critical inputs for subnational climate action.
There is an urgent need for capacity and institution building for enhanced monitoring and reporting.
Society often lacks not the willingness to act but the necessary information on why and how to act, which hinders the localization of climate action. Enhancing awareness can play a crucial role in accelerating this process. Local knowledge and engineering should be promoted to advance sustainable practices. Special attention should be paid to the local social hydrology and adaptative management traditions.
A robust monitoring and accountability system can ensure effective implementation of KSAPCC.
